6/15/2008

Music Monday: James (redux)

This may appear to be laziness, but I'm actually rather inspired.

I went to see James last night, and they were as wonderful as expected. Also, my James-loving girls out there, I can hook you up with an not very exciting venue pamphlet with a big old James advert on the front if you so desire. You know, to decorate your cubicle or refridgerator to give that I'm-quite-cosmopolitan-and-I-listen-to-music-you've-never-heard-of vibe.

As you may have gathered, music is very important to me. So much so, I actually had to tell The Dude at the beginning of two of the songs (Tomorrow & Out to Get You for the two people who give a shit) that I would probably get teary. Fast forward mere moments later when yes, I did cry. With regard to "Out to Get You", I actually had some tears streaming down my face. I must have (quite rightly) looked like a mad woman, swaying to the music, mouthing the lyrics, and crying. Welcome to my emotionally unbalanced world. I'm a freak, right?

I could pontificate on why James' lyrics are so important to me, but that would be boring, and no doubt cheesy. Essentially, the truth and power of their lyrics resonated with me at a time when depression and lonliness dominated my days. To hear these songs live makes all of the resulting emotions flood back. I'm 15, sobbing to my Mom that I hate being me. I'm 19 realising that the body I had just the previous year wasn't as bad as I thought. I'm 23, in a new country, starting a new life. Now here I am, nearly 30, in this country which is now my home, a mother, a wife, still singing along to the same song. Life has changed dramatically, but the music is a constant.

In case anyone wants to have a listen to this song that embarrassingly brought me to tears, "Out to Get You":

My question to you is - what musician/band/song does this for you? What song, or performer would bring/has brought you to tears based on your connection?

14 comments:

I generally cannot listen to Josh Groban without crying. I know, I know . . . totally cheesy. But he really does have the most amazing voice I've ever heard and I am so moved by the depth of his talent.

There's one that gets me everytime.Let Love Speak Up Itself, by the Beautiful South. Dunno what it's actually about, Paul Heaton could be on about literally anything, but it always makes me poignantly remember the 3 pregnancies I lost.

'From the day it came unto us, till the day it wants to leave.For it will, it will go,and it will not say goodbye, just like it didn't say hello.There will not be a send-off, a funeral or mass.Just a pathetic little vodka from a dirty little glass,'To the world's greatest mum...'

Absolutely nothing used to make me cry. Nothing. Now? Give me a shlocky beer commercial and I'm all over the kleenex. Really. Given my mood, if something sounds dicey, I turn the station. I'm into a lot of superficial fast cheeze, lately.

U2 is what does it for me. I'm actually watching Rattle & Hum right this very moment, ruminating on this very subject. U2 has been my favorite band since 1983. I was 7, and my aunt had made a tape of "October" for my mom, and it was the first time music had ever made me sit up and take notice.

U2 is the closest to religion that I am going to get, I think. Some people have God, to whom they turn when things go sour or when they're feeling less than whole.

I get quite emotional over Old McDonald had A Farm...sorry...what... music for adults? Is it anything by the Wiggles? I thought your rave on Miss P was sublime by the way, have just caught up now. Also...can see you have the ads going. How is that? How does that work? Can you retire now?

Oh, dude. I so have you trumped on the embarrasing crying thing. Firstly, my cry-instinct is kind of broken, in that I have a tendency to cry mostly when I'm really, really angry. Or when I'm just overwhelmed emotionally. But rarely when I'm just sad or touched do I have the full-blown, tears-streaming like I do when I'm mad.

So weirdly (and here is the odd/embarrasing part), I have tears rolling down my face every time I hear the national anthem. I am not particularly patriotic. I am a musician, so I appreciate a good tune perhaps more than the next person, but crying? That's just fucked up. Our anthem isn't even that well written or anything. Of course, I recently caught the opening of a Euro Cup game with Germany and Austria, and I cried during the performances of both of their national anthems as well. Appparently, I'm an equal-opportunity anthem-cryer.

Of course, there are plenty of more normal songs/lyrics that make me cry, but none so interesting as the anthem thingy. Michelle Shocked's Anchorage is a sad one for me because I thought of it (and heard it) often during the time when I was moving from Texas to NC. And Indigo Girls Leaving is another that hits me sometimes for the same reason. And then there's all the standard Cure/Smiths/Depeche Mode type stuff that make me cry for my sad youth. But yeah. Really, it's the powerful anthems that get me.

Hairy Farmer Family has set me off too, now. 'Let Love Speak Up Itself' always does my head in. Sob sob. It'll be even worse now. Sob sob SOB.

Hallelujah, but sung by K.D. Lang.

Mr Bobby, by Manu Chao 'Hey Bobby MarleySing something good to meThis world go crazyIt's an emergency' and then he gets to the last verse about looking out of his window and not seeing any lights and I go 'bWahhhhhh...'

It Doesn't Matter Any More, sung by either Eva Cassidy or Martin Simpson.